Fishing rods suitable for fly casting are generally so long as to require that the rod be fabricated in sections, usually a butt section and a tip section, so that it may be stored and transported conveniently. The sections are commonly joined together at a ferrule which is secured to the end of one section and telescopically receives the adjoining end of the second section. The ferrule must not only securely engage both sections; it must also provide sufficient strength to preclude permanent deformation or rupture under bending load without detracting from the tip flexibility required for efficient casting. Prior art ferrules generally require one or more separate steps during fabrication of the rod if they are to meet the stated strength and flexibility requirements.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for fabricating a ferrule arrangement for a sectional fishing rod whereby the ferrule is formed along with one of the rod sections.
It is conventional to form sections of a fishing rod blank by wrapping resin-impregnated heat-curable sheets of material about a mandrel, compacting the wrapped material about the mandrel, and then curing the wrapped material with heat until the material solidifies. The compacting forces and the mandrel are then removed, leaving a tubular rod of desired configuration and properties. The mandrels used in these fabrication processes are generally tapered rods which have varying rates of taper along their lengths. Each rod section requires its own mandrel.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a mandrel for use in fabricating a fishing rod section, which mandrel permits a ferrule to be formed as an integral part of the rod section at the time the rod section is fabricated.